


Focusing on the particular

by Winter_Oswin



Series: Grave Digger Chronicles [2]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), X-Men (Movieverse)
Genre: Activism, Andy is doing her best, Becoming an Avenger, Domestic Avengers, Especially when you're Andy Stark, F/M, Growing Up, Growing Up is Hard, Mutant Rights, Mutants, Not Canon Compliant, Publicity, Rumors, Social Justice, Tony is a good dad, headlines
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-01
Updated: 2019-04-01
Packaged: 2019-12-30 13:15:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18315980
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Winter_Oswin/pseuds/Winter_Oswin
Summary: Maybe I'll stay right hereMaybe I'll keep this mindMaybe I'll live in this moment foreverMaybe I'll speak to youMaybe I'll walk this lineMaybe I'll adjust to adjusting togetherI could open the door and breathe in the dustAnd I could walk through those flames till I don't feel their touchOh but how can I leave when I know what's out ther~Andy's next two years told through headlines.





	Focusing on the particular

**Author's Note:**

> So, I have a lot of stuff planned but I also wanted to write a little summary for what happened after the end of Grave Digger. This is what came out and I hope you like it!
> 
> There shouldn't be anything triggering in this. 
> 
> Also, the title and lyrics in the summary are from the song "Twenty Twelve" by Matt Maeson. You should really check him out.
> 
> The next parts will go deeper into Andy's new life as an Avenger, a public Mutant and it will introduce some new characters.
> 
> I was thinking of doing a little "That's how they met" series which is just stories about her meeting different marvel characters like Wolverine, Spiderman and Deadpool. If you'd like her to meet someone else, drop a comment!
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoy this little story! Please leave a review, I love reading them!

**_September 2016_ **

**ANDY STARK: EXECUTION FAKE?**

**KIDNAPPED BY HYDRA: Andy Stark speaks about her traumatic experience**

**The new Stark heir, who is she?**

**Tony Stark speaks: "The identity of the mother is confidential"**

**Top five conspiracy theories regarding Andy Stark**

**The Stark Mystery: What really happened to Andy Stark**

**~**

Andy turned the tablet off with a sigh. Several weeks had passed since they revealed that she was alive and the press still hadn't calmed down.

Andy knew that this would happen, Tony and Pepper did their best to prepare her. She was a public figure now, whether she liked it or not.

She had a Twitter and an Instagram account, went to photoshoots, countless interviews and press conferences.

Andy probably met more people in the last month than ever before.  Of course they made sure that no one asked any questions that were out of her comfort zone, Pepper made sure of that and her and Tony shielded her from sensitive topics as well as possible. 

It was still stressful. Some nights Andy felt like she couldn't breath. She'd just sit awake all night and scroll through the articles.

"Do you ever get used to it?", She once asked Tony and her father gave her sympathetic smile.

"I grew up like this, you know. It's always been my reality. You'll get used to it. But that won't necessarily make it easier.", he replied and Andy didn't feel better at all. 

"Can't you just sugarcoat it?", she sighed and Tony shrugged with a smirk. 

"No can do. You're an adult. I won't lie to you."

**~**

_**Feburary 2017** _

**"I'm no genius.", Andy Stark addresses Stark Industries' future.**

**No college plans for Andy Stark. "Right now there is far more important things that I have to take care of."**

**~**

"Are you sure that you don't want to at least try out school?", Tony asked once. Andy had gotten her GED not to long ago but College was something she refused to even talk about. 

Tony didn't care if his daughter had a degree. He knew how quick she was and financially she'd never have to worry about anything. He just feared that she was missing out on the social part of growing up. 

Andy almost exclusively spend time with adults, Ace aside. And while she always insisted that that was fine by her, Tony didn't want her to miss out on anything.

"Sorry,  but that sounds like the worst idea ever. ", Andy commented, not looking up from her sketchbook. She was drawing Tony, a few weeks ago she started doing portraits and she was pretty good at it to. Andy probably got that from her mother. 

Andy still refused to talk to Daisy, not that anyone could blame her. Tony talked to her though, every once in a while.

He didn't expect that Daisy would actually make an effort to build a relationship to her daughter. Surprisingly she did. Once a month Tony talked to her on the phone about how Angry was doing, what progress she made. Andy knew of the calls, if she had an issue with them she didn't mention it. 

"It doesn't have to be anything too tough, you could maybe study art or literature or something like that."

"It's not about the academic part. It's the people.", Andy replied, her brows pulled together in a concentrated look. 

"What about them?"

Andy put down her pen and looked up at Tony, one eyebrow raised. "Really? I thought it's obvious. People get freaked out by me, either because of who I am or how I act or because my face always looks kinda wrong when I try too hard to stay the same. And I get freaked out by people because... because I get freaked out by everything. ", with that she continued her work and Tony dropped the topic. 

**~**

_**May 2017** _

**Father-Daughter Time! Tony and Andy Stark on Vacation in Greece**

**"He's a dear friend, he's family.", Andy Stark addresses rumors surrounding her relationship to Ace Caeton**

**~**

"I want to get married by the beach, outside the Malibu mansion, at sundown, and you'll be playing the piano while I walk down the isle.", Andy chuckled.  She was wearing a white summer dress and her normally pale skin was golden from the sun.

She was lounging on a couch, the sun shining on her face through the open windows, Ace could hear the sound of the ocean outside. 

"I thought I'm supposed to stand at the end of the isle, how am I supposed to do that and play the piano,", he joked and Andy pretended to think about it for a while. 

"Huh- Looks like we can't get married then. I prefer you as a musician over a husband anyways. ", she finally grinned before Toby stepped into the room.

"Did I just hear husband and marriage?", he asked with a raised eyebrow while buttoning his white shirt. Ace caught a glimpse of the arch reactor on his chest. He sometimes forgot that even Andy's father wasn't completely human. 

"Oh, you haven't heard?", Andy smiled. "According to buzzfeed I'm not only dating Ace but the reason he joined our vacation spontaneously is because he is going to propose!"

"Yeah,  I'll make it real cliché, at sundown at the beach, maybe I'll hire a mariachi band.", Ace joked and Tony rolled with his eyes. 

"Yeah, and the next headline will be about how I hunt you all the way across the ocean because yiu didn't ask for my permission.", Tony then smirked and Andy burst out laughing.

**~**

_**August 2017** _

**5 Times Andy Stark rocked the red carpet and our hearts.**

**19, rich, and famous: Andy Stark talks about life in the public eye, future plans and the relationship to her father**

**Buzzfeed Unsolved: The Stark Mystery**

**~**

It was insane how good Andy was as a public figure. Tony never stopped marveling at that. Maybe it had something to do with her past. The pressure to be perfect, the ability to act exactly like someone wanted her to. It used to be about survival but Andy still knew how to use it. 

She never said the wrong thing in interviews, her social media didn't need to be monitored because she knew what she's doing. Tabloids never got any scandalous stories about her. 

"Thank God, she's better than me.", Tony once told Pepper and she smiled at him. 

"When it comes to this topic, I might just agree with you."

Andy took it all with humor though, always joked about how pretentious the photoshoots were, how ridiculous she felt talking about herself on live television.

"It's so over the top dramatic. I can't believe it.", she once stated, looking at the cover of a Vanity Fair magazine. She was on the cover, sitting on a large throne, wearing a golden gown, her make-up dark and dramatic. In one of her hands was a replica of the Iron Man helmet.  ** _"The future of the Stark Empire"_** She looked like an empress.

"I look ridiculous. Like I decapitated you. I bested the king in combat and now I shall take his throne!", she chuckled. 

**~**

_**November 2017** _

**Not just a socialite? Andy Stark, spotted at a Mutant Rights Protest**

**"Different is the new normal. Get used to it", Andy Stark talks activism, mutant rights and living with the Avengers.**

**Stark Industries funds Xavier's School for gifted Youngsters. Benevolence or personal Agenda?**

**~**

It was the first time Andy took a polarizing stand and boy oh boy, the whole thing was a fucking dumpster fire. 

Ever since Mutants were revealed to the world through the Cuba Incident, public opinion hadn't been the best but in recent months, with more and more official records of mutants and more and more prosecution, it had gotten a lot more dangerous to be a mutant. 

In one case in Florida one man killed another and argued in court that it wasn't murder since the victim, a mutant, wasn't a person. 

Known mutants had almost no chances of getting hired, hospitals refused care for them and many people were demanding a registration law. 

Andy wasn't affected by any of that, her mutations weren't as visible as those of others. She had her own personal doctors, would probably never have to get a real job and everyone in her environment was either a little abnormal themselves or used to it. 

Still, these were her people, people like Hank, Ace and Raven who couldn't hide as easily. She knew that Hank always injected himself with his serum to pass as human and she noticed how rarely Ace left the compound on his own, only going places where he knew he'd be accepted.

They were innocent, none of them chose to be like this. Struggling with controlling your mutation was hard enough, being abused for it was worse, Andy knew from experience. 

Andy was privileged, she knew that much. She just needed to find a way to make use of that privilege.

~

_**Dezember 2017** _

**"Mutant and Proud.", ANDY STARK PUBLICLY OUTS HERSELF AS A MUTANT**

**Scandalous or empowering? Everything about Andy Starks Mutant status and what it means for the future**

**#MutantandProud trending on Twitter "We aren't Monsters, we are people. Your friends, neighbors, your family."**

**~**

They discussed it hundreds of times, if it was the right move, if it was too soon, if Andy could handle the inevitable backlash. Tony was terrified that the media would eat her whole but in the end it didn't matter.

Andy was convinced that she needed to do this and they all stood behind her when she did. 

The response was massive. Not only online, where Andy got her fair share of death threats and insults. An angry mob once gathered outside Stark Tower, demanding to 'hand over the mutant scum'. Pepper barely got off her phone, trying to shield Andy as well as possible.

It still got to her, though. Tony could tell. She read all the articles, all the nasty things people said about her and Tony knew that each and every one of them was terrified that it would set her back, that it would scare her away. 

It didn't. It was too important to her. Because death threats and insults weren't the only things she received. 

No. Hundreds of letters, mails, messages and comments, coming from people like Andy. Mutants, young and old, their families, their friends, calling her inspiring, asking for advise. Other public figures like the singer Dazzler also came forward and revealed themselves.

Andy focused on that, focused on the good and gave her best to keep herself together, not letting the press rip her apart.

**~**

_**March 2018** _

**"I change faces like others change clothes." Andy Stark explains her mutation.**

**Blue is the new black. Andy poses on the red carpet with blue skin, red hair and yellow eyes. "It's about solidarity"**

**7 times Andy Stark snuck right past paparazzi**

**~**

It got better with time, people got used to Andy, got comfortable. She wasn't threatening, besides she was basically an Avenger in the making. She could probably be trusted.  **  
**

That didn't mean that it got easier for other mutants. Not over night, not because a few celebrities spoke up and that's it. Andy's job wasn't done.

They expected her to shut up after the reveal. To go away. She told her opinion but now it was time to move on. Andy had other plans. 

She threw it in their faces, all the ways that she was different. Forced them to confront the reality that people like Andy were part of their world. Andy stopped hiding,  she shifted on live television, she spoke openly about it, she joined protests and addressed the issues, not caring if people got uncomfortable.

It was intense. Andy couldn't deny that. The stress that came with all the hate was insane and some days she regretted it, sometimes it all got too much and she hid away in her room, unable to face the world.

She made the right call, though. Andy was convinced of that. Besides, she'd been through much worse and nothing they could say would take away that she was a person. Something she'd fought for for years.

**~**

**_July 2018_ **

**Andy Stark, Ace Caeton and Wanda Maximoff: The future of the Avengers?**

**Andy Stark: New official member of the Avengers.**

**THE BESERKER: First time in action. Andy Stark is strong, fast and violent**

**~**

"The Beserker?! Really?! I'm not some bloody animal!", Andy exclaimed, tossing the magazine aside. Tony chuckled slightly before putting down a plate with an omelet in front of her. 

"Well, you are strong and fast and Beserkers are shape shifters.", Bucky shrugged. 

Andy only glared at him before digging her fork into the food. "Yeah, but they shift into animals. It doesn't even make sense!", she complained. 

Two days ago Andy joined her first Avengers Mission. Tony sort of always knew that it would happen. After all, she was his daughter, she was trained by HYDRA, basically as strong and fast as Steve and Bucky and after the whole mutant- scandal Tony saw clearly how important justice was to her. 

That didn't mean that he liked it. He tried to talk her out of it for months but in the end he knew that it would be her decision and that he'd support her. So he build her a suit. Not like his, it had far less metal, she didn't need it, was almost indestructible herself. Besides, she needed to be flexible. 

He made the suit out of the same material as Natasha's, Steve's and Bucky's suits, gave it a metal chest piece to protect her heart and a gladiator helmet of sorts, it was almost like a crown. The only other metal parts were two gauntlets with repulsors and flight thruster boots, powered by her own arc reactor in her chest piece. 

The first time they flew together might be one of the best moments of Tony's life. To see the joy on her face as they blasted through the air, to hear her laugh over the com as she made loopings and flipped around like she'd been doing it all her life, Tony could've never imagined how amazing that felt. How connected they were in that moment. 

Fighting was different though. It wasn't a huge mission, no planet threatening event, just arms dealers. That didn't make him feel any better. The whole time he caught himself watching out for her more than the others and he knew that she wouldn't like that. 

This way at least he saw that Andy really knew what she was doing. And her and Ace together made a deadly duo. When they fought together it looked so harmonious, almost like their special dance that they still did every once in a while. 

The mission was a success and a good way to introduce Andy as an Avenger. And of course, now that she was a superhero, she needed a name.

"It's like they still think I'm some fucking monster.", she complained. 

"It's part of the job, you don't get to choose what they call you. Do you think I wanted to be called Captain America? It's so cheesy.", Steve said and Bucky had to chuckle at that. 

"Besides, at least your name is cool, what kind of name is The Harrier? You know that people actually think my name is Harry?", Ace smirked and Andy relaxed a bit.

"I stil think it's stupid!", she announced before taking a sip of her tea. 

"You'll get used to it.", Tony smirked before ruffling through her hair. It had taken them months and months of therapy but they got this far. Andy could hug him, could rest her head on his shoulder, curl up next to him on a couch, hold his hand. Not always, not every day but they were all incredibly proud of her, of everything she'd done.

Tony knew it would never be easy, all of them knew that, but things were okay, manageable as Andy would say, and sometimes, a lot of the times actually, they wer pretty good. 


End file.
